


Olly Olly Oxenfree

by n0t_bess1e_b4ss_0n_the_b4ss



Category: Heathers (1988), Heathers: The Musical - Murphy & O'Keefe
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Chandler is the team mom, Character turning into a monster, Cryptic stuff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fridge Horror, Horror Elements, JD is a creep, Movie Characters, Psychological Horror, Psychological Trauma, So much death, Temporary Character Death, Time Loop, Time Travel AU, Time Travel Fix-It, Veronica can reverse time, Veronica is ace/aro, Veronica sees her friends die a lot, everything is platonic and sisterly, lots of pain, slowly, veronica has anxiety
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-21 07:27:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17638412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/n0t_bess1e_b4ss_0n_the_b4ss/pseuds/n0t_bess1e_b4ss_0n_the_b4ss
Summary: Veronica discovers she can reverse time when she’s weirdly brought back to the day everything went downhill. Taking this as a chance to make everything right, she does everything to save Heather Chandler and anyone else caught in the crossfire. But battling fate is a big gamble, and it’s starting to take a toll on Veronica, starting with the searing pain in her chest.





	1. The Beginning of The End

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome!! Please enjoy this mess. It gets wild

When the bomb went off, time seemed to slow down so Veronica could feel the pain even longer. She hadn’t even been close enough, but it felt like she was in the very middle of the explosion. Red haze blurred her vision, the smell of gooey intestines filled her nostrils, and a terrible burning sensation ripped her apart from the inside out.

She gasped and opened her eyes to a blazing field. A distorted, shadowy figure stood a few yards away, crouched on all fours. Its body was still, but it seems to be flickering and staticky, and its head was twitching around wilding. Red glowing eyes seemed to stare directly into Veronica’s soul.

“Where...where am I?” The girl croaked.

No answer.

“Am...am I dead?”

No answer.

The creature slowly stepped forward. It extended one of its hands, fingers widespread and tipped with hooked claws. A talon was pressed to Veronica’s chest and pain overtook her once again.

———

Claw away the darkness.

Veronica tries. She really does. She’s weaker. It’s harder to fight.

Animal instincts. That’s what Veronica has developed. She has climbed her way to the top of the pyramid and was crowned as the beta female, right below the alpha. The apex predator. Killing is all she learned from him and it’s going to stick with her for the rest of her life.

**Never trust anyone.**

But when all of that is stripped away, when all of it is taken and you’re left completely helpless, it’s fucking terrifying. Veronica feels naked without all the power she struggled to obtain. She didn’t realize how much she needed it until now. She had to be strong.

Her claws chip and darkness overtakes her.

Veronica is pulled back into a freezing black ocean. Waves batter against her. Salt water stings in her several open wounds. Red bubbles explode from her lips and, in return, bloody mouthfuls of sea foam rush down her esophagus.

_“...Veronica?”_

Over Poseidon’s wrath, she thinks she hears a voice. It’s familiar and the only thing she’s got. She tries to cling to it.

_“...Veronica?”_

Right, that’s her name. They’re calling out to her. Maybe they’re trying to help?

**Never trust anyone.**

_“...Veronica, the hell is going on with you?”_

_“...Hellooo?”_

_“...Geez, what’s up with her?”_

One of those voices doesn’t belong. It doesn’t make sense, because-

More sound. More talking. Over twenty voices babble at once and Veronica is slipping again. She scrabbles and grips and tries to stay on but she’s falling, falling, falling.

Coral scrapes her back raw as the riptide captures her. Red mist filled the water and she convulsively swallowed, choking harder as her lungs fill up with the wrong element. The tang of salt and blood swishes in her mouth.

_“...Veronica!”_

It feels like a harpoon has just stabbed her through the stomach and she’s wrenched upwards.

Veronica breaches the surface.

She gasped and stumbled backwards, bumping into someone who was eating at their table. She was having a sensory overload. Everything was too bright, too loud, too much. Talking shreds her eardrums and the smells are overwhelming. People are staring at her and she doesn’t blame them; she probably looks like she’s having a panic attack. Maybe she is.

But wait- This is the cafeteria. Why is she in the cafeteria? Wasn’t she out in the court-

Okay, wait a minute. Was that flash of red-

Oh dear god it is.

Heather Chandler herself is standing a few feet away, arms crossed over her chest and staring at Veronica with one eyebrow raised. Duke and McNamara flank her from behind, looking equally as curious, but they aren’t what concerns Veronica. It’s the demon queen that was supposed to be dead. But she isn’t.

When her senses somewhat gather, Veronica jumped back further and screamed, startling many people in the cafeteria. Her eyes are practically bulging out of their sockets and she looks like she’s on the verge of having some kind of episode.

“What has gotten into you?” Chandler said, and her voice sounds too real.

This doesn’t make sense. Heather Chandler is dead, she has been for weeks now. Veronica saw her die- she went to the funeral! How could she be...

It’s just a dream. This has to be a dream, it’s the only logical explanation to any of this. What else would it be?

“Veronica, are you...okay?” McNamara questioned.

Veronica doesn’t answer. She’s too busy trying to wrap her head around what was going on.

This was the day when everything went downhill. The lunchtime poll was going to happen, then she met JD. After that was the Remington party which led to...

What if this was a mockery of her life? What if she died in that explosion and, instead of going to heaven or hell, she’s reliving her downfall? This is a fate worse than death if you ask her.

“Oh my god...” She finally spoke up in a hearse voice.

But what if it wasn’t. What if she was weirdly reincarnated back to her former self on that Doomsday? Or maybe it really was all a dream.

Veronica looks up and Chandler’s eyes are alive. She doesn’t look dead at all.

“You’re alive!”

Emotions were rushing through her. She nearly knocked Chandler over when she hugged her. It was a weird gesture, she had never been very physical with any of the Heathers, but this was so needed right now.

Chandler was stiff, shock registering on her face. She had expected many things from Veronica and outright hugging her in such desperation was never one of them. Her hands awkwardly hovered over the smaller girl’s back, like she couldn’t decide whether she wanted to shove her away or comfort her. She looked around and then glanced over at Duke and McNamara, who both shrugged helplessly.

Eventually, Veronica pulled back, but it was like she touched fire. She ripped away and stared at her hands like they were drenched in blood then back up at Chandler again. The emotion in her eyes was unreadable, but her fear was so obvious. She took off running and, when she did, she caught a momentary glance at JD in the corner.

Veronica slams the bathroom door shut. She’s breathing heavily, trying to catch her breath, but it feels like air can satisfy her lungs anymore. She braces herself over the sink and paws cold water onto her face.

**Nothing makes sense.**

Nothing makes sense and that scares her even more.

She looks up and yelped loudly, backing up into one of the stall doors. That shadowy figure she had seen was staring back at her from the mirror. It tilts its head slowly, blinking its ruby eyes once, twice.

“Who are you...?”

No answer.

“What’s going on?”

No answer, but only for a moment.

A garbled voice comes from somewhere.

“̶̧̳̟̱̼̗̳͕͍̦̇̈́͂́͑̾͊̅̔̅͂̓̊͗̌̄̎̕͜Y̴̨̛̹͍̩̯͈͎̽͊̒̎́̓̃̈́͊̇͌͗̒̑̔̿͐̕͝͝͝ͅo̴̬͖͍̓̀̿̂̒̈̋̀͋̑̔̄̃͊́̈́͘͝U̸̢̪̟̣͗̓̍̑̿́̍̃̓͋͘͝.̸̨̢̻̗̰̺͔̩̫̜̜̯̮̦͎̈͂̔̅̈͝ ̶̛͕̖̣̟̬͈̤̇̀̅̂̔̀͂̍ͅͅT̷̯͕͎̖̎̈̊̂̒̽̃̕͝r̴̭̲̒̿̍̒͂̕ÿ̷̢̨͕̥͓̳̟̝̦̞͕̭̱̮̗̥͓͜͝.̸̨̢̛͚̫͍̺͎̯͖͖̟̱̱̮̳͚̦̪̀́͌̑́̄̋̇́̒̈́̚͠ͅ ̸̧̥͉͖͙̞͙̱̱̗̙̙̮̤̹͉̈̔Ą̶̛͇͕̩̺̼̮̯̯̯̪̥̬̟̘̗̞̘̜͕͕͔̖̍̓͂͛̋͆̏͐̂̋̚ͅĢ̸̞͎̫̼̱̭͎͉̪̣̣̭̲̜͚̦̺̯̅͗̀͒̿͜͠a̷̧̡̢̭̲̥̳̬͔͚̞̦̝̥̰͍̙͉͎͓̹̹̱̹̠̜͖̔̌̄̿͛̌͛͗͛̓̏̇̆̃̓̒̌͘͘͝͝͝͝i̶̛̝͙͉͌̿́̀͊̍͌̒̋̿͐̃̔̈́̾͑̀̅͊n̴̛͔̻̤͍̬̳̜̲̘̣̖͔͒͑͆̊̂̍͛̎͛̍̋̎̇͊͑͗̊́͐͗̚̕͝͠ͅ.̷̨̡̛͒̈́̔́̋̈́́̇͐͜͝

A shiver runs down Veronica’s spine. The voice coils up around her neck and directly into her ears. It sounds like this thing has never learned proper English or dialect, as it speaks in broken sentences.

“What are you talking about?”

The creature tilts its head slowly in the other direction.

“̸̢̡͔̜̝̦͚͇̤̙̂̈́̇̿͐͂̕͠Y̵̢̧̧̢͎͕͖̱͇̦͈̬̲̝̼̜̫̳̎̊o̸̡̲̭͔̭̝̬̙͎̙͖̼͖̹̊̅͆̋̑͒̿̿̊̀͗̿̊̓͆̄̕̕̕̚͝u̸̧̨̨̨̠͓̼̦̰̙̲̩͔͎̪͚̠̝͎͆̔͐̈́̋̂̇͐͗͗̏̽͆̕̕͝ͅ.̶̢̨̡̛̝͙͇̙̼̩͇͇̪̪̭̗̳̪͓̝̱̥̫͉͇͑̾̔͒̆́̈́̎͂̏͒̏̀͆́̆̃̾́̄͒͑̕͜͜͠ͅ ̵̧̡̢̛̪̲̮̼̺̞͖̺̠̤͕͗͛̌̒̍̿̍̃̏̈́̈́̒̃̿̚͜͝ͅC̵̡̛̲̦̹̳̲͔̪̮͖̯̲͈͔͕̭̪̺̦͉̺̙̒̍̎̾͑͒̑̃͒h̶̡̢̢̨̤̙̩̗͚͖͖̦͈̗̗̱̳̳̎̽́͛̅ͅA̶͔̜͂̀́̔̇̓̇̋̀́͋̂͊̏̈̓̓̿͂͗͘͘͠͠n̶͉̤̘̰̒̒̒́̾͑̿͋̎͛͗͂̂̈́̃̈́̚͠g̵̟͚̎̿ȩ̴̢̧̛͖̭̘͉̹͚͈̪̯̠̩̰̟̳̮͇̥̱̞̩̖̾̓̀͂͝.̷̧̢̨̢̬͖͎̝̞̹̪͕̰͎͖͙̪̣̞̙̘̖́̾̈̿̾͜ͅͅͅ ̷̧̧̢̛̛͍̪̥̯̤͓̜̪͉̲͔̩̪̥̥̹͕͂͊̎̎̋̓͂̆̎̑͘Ṫ̷̡̧̜̲̰͕͉͖̪̪̦̤̦̬̝͇̻̙̰̲̮͎̥̻̪̣͛͐̋̽̇̅́̔̽͐̎͊̈́̇͐̎̾̋̌͊̕͝͠ḯ̷̛̖̤͍̙̯̖̹̩̫̰̼̜͖͓̳̥̮̟͙̯̟̬̗̏͗̕̕͜͜m̸̧̡̧̧̢̛͇͎̗̞̰͎͇̪͖̗̻̦̜̃̄͛́̽̈̏̿͘͝ͅͅë̶̜̘͍̗̩̳̤͎̲͚̯͔͉̠̞̦́̽̽ͅ.̸̨̧̡̡̛̦͎̙̳̥͔͍̤̩͕͔̺̥̳̦̗̹̻͍͎̳̫̂̏̊̈́̎”̷̧̙͕̳̣̫̯̣̖̪̼̟̺̟͈͔̭̀̀̌̿̌̈́̀̂͛͗̃̈͐͘̚̚͝͝

Change time? Does that mean Veronica was getting a second chance at life? To fix things?

The bathroom door suddenly swung open and Veronica yelped loudly. A sharp pain spirals from her chest and the world around her seemed to become black and white. The Heathers are coming in, but their strides are slow. Then, they’re going backwards and the door shuts itself.

Veronica gasped as she’s released from whatever-that-was. The air had gotten so thick, like it was encasing her in an invisible full-body cast. A heartbeat seemed to pulsate through the atmosphere, beating loudly in her ears. She had absolutely no idea what that was.

“̷̢̨̮̩͖͉̲̤̲͔̳͔̰̫͉̳̙̼̝̘̩͋͂̈́͂͜͜͜ͅỸ̵̠̞͇̬̂́̀̈́ó̴̧̢̤̭̪̘͕̥̺͙̘̯͕̖̜̹͂̀͑̃́͛͜͠͝͝ͅư̶̡̧̛͕̖̯̙̦̗̩̼̮͉̓̆̒̈́̊̓̌̂̀̈́̑̈̎͋͆͐̒̅̾͘͘͝͝͝ͅ.̸̧̢͙͓̹͖͍̩͈͙̬̮͇̬̱͙̩̗̫́́͑̈́̅̈́́́͋́̄͑̾̑̈́͘̕͠͝͝͝͝ͅ ̵̧̫̯̝̠̪͖̹̟̮̤͍̹̰̫̖̲͉̦̭̰͉̻͕̈́́́͋́͝͝ͅͅͅR̵̦͈̰̰̜̭͉̘̙̠͓͖̠͉̞̗̈͐̇̋̀͗́͝ë̸̥̦͍̗̠̠̩͜v̴͈̮̪̦̞̳̳͍̝̦̖͉̫̝̄̽͋̑͂Ȩ̶̞̻̦̙̪̬͙͓͚͒͂͌̎́̒̅͑̏̒͗̄͘̚͘̕͝͝͝ͅr̶̡̛͖̮̟̲̽̈̈̽̅̍́͊̓͛̓̇̂̄̓̽̌͛̄̄̈́̕̕͝͝ͅs̵̡̢̡̬͙̖͍̻̀̎̏͋̅͐̆͛̍̽͌̔͛̄̌̇̈̈́̒̇̕͘͘ͅĕ̴̳̤͔͍͉̯̣̞̩͍̺̖̺͍̾͋̀̑̋̅̊̀̕͘.̴̧̨̧̨̳̯̼͉̗͙̗͇̮͕͕̝̼̔̄͊͒̅̊̏̄͌̾͂̆̓̀͌̀͆̎̔̿̈̈̓͒̕͘̕ͅ ̴̡̨̡̧̣̯͔͔̲͚̬̳̝̘͕̥̺̤͕̻̰͆T̸̡̨̫̣̯͉̼͙͖̤̳̥̬͍̣͈̰̎́͌̽̋̇͋̿̋̌͜͝i̵̢͍͕̹̫͛͊̓̇͘m̶͍̋̃͐́̏́ȩ̷̬̘͕̠̘͙͚̩̟̜̠̞̱͖̠̥̥̱̞̰̝͔̲̍̓̅̾͗̅̑̆̾̊̿̀͂͊͐͜͝͠ͅ.̵̢͈̼̝̯̥̤͛̑̃͋͑͐̀͆̆̈́̋́̾̏̇̒̊̈́́͌̈́̅̓͆͂”̵̡̧͍̬̭̮͉̺̣͕̠̩̳͇̣̹̝̤͉̫̫̰̜̋̀̀̊͜

Veronica swallowed hard. That’s what she did? She reversed fucking time?

She remembered the pain she had felt and pulled down her collar a little bit. Right above her cleavage from a thin slot scratched in her skin. It was around three inches in length and about half an inch in width. The inside was completely blackened, but it seemed to give off a blue glow.

“What...the...fuck...?”

Veronica looked up and the creature was gone from the mirror. The bathroom door swung open and the Heathers walked in.

“Okay, time to spill, Veronica.” Chandler crossed her arms, “What the hell was that all about?”

“What kind of drugs are you taking?” Duke raised an eyebrow.

Veronica considered telling the truth, but it’s not like the demoness’ would believe her. They would think she’s a total nutcase, and that’s not what she wanted.

“Uhh...sorry.” She said sheepishly, still a little shaken up, “I just...kinda blacked out there a little bit!”

“Yeah, we could tell,” McNamara spoke up, “Everyone in the entire cafeteria could tell.”

“Haha...right.”

Chandler looked a little suspicious, but she drops the look after awhile, turning her attention to something else.

“Let’s try not to let that happen again. Now...”

The way the day went by seemed so eerily familiar. Except, Veronica didn’t talk to JD in the cafeteria. She avoided him and his stares, only now realizing how creepy he was. Unfortunately, she had completely forgotten about how he had been at that gas station, and it’s not like Chandler would go in for her.

Veronica tensed up when she saw that smile. It was almost sinister, like he was already plotting the murder of Heather Chandler.

“Greetings and salutations,” He said in his crackly voice. “Nice night for a quick bite from a Snacky Shack, eh?”

“Actually, I’m on my way to a party. Just grabbing a few things.” Veronica responds, not making eye contact when she spoke to the guy. She just kept her head down and tried to find those damn Corn Nuts as quickly as possible.

“Oh, what’s the rush? I’m sure there will be tons of men with erections left by the time you get there.” JD said, leaning back on his heels.

“I am asexual and aromantic, thank you very much.” Veronica spits, finally looking up to strike a glare at him.

For a moment, JD’s eyebrows raise in surprise, and he almost looks disappointed. Then, he clicks his tongue and chuckled.

“You’d be surprised at how many times I’ve heard a girl say that one. They say no dick can please them and then-“

Veronica is already walking away. She checks out quickly and shuffled back to Chandler’s car, glancing over her shoulder while she went.

“What’s got you all paranoid?” Chandler asked while pulling out of the parking lot.

“That guy over there.” Veronica nods at JD, who was standing at the entrance, “He’s creepy.”

Chandler squints at him then snorted.

“I can’t disagree there.”

So far, things were going just fine. Next was the party, but as long as Veronica didn’t mess this up, she should be home free. If she doesn’t piss Chandler off, then everything will turn out okay!

Or, that’s what she likes to tell herself.

When they get to the building, it’s so much worse than Veronica remembered it being. The stench of alcohol and pot hangs heavily in the air. The sweaty bodies of half-drunk white toddlers rub uncomfortably up against each other, becoming a mass of writhing limbs in those tightly-spaced rooms. A musk of sex coats almost every guy as they watch hungrily for their next meal. Veronica wonders about how many unreceived loads of cum have been sprayed on the walls and floorboards, how many unborn babies were conceived in a single room alone. There’s not a shred of doubt that she’s stepping on multiple dried puddles of jizz right now.

She meets Brad, who she had completely forgotten about until now. Chandler goes off with her guy- David is his name, maybe- leaving Veronica alone with this horny college student. This time, she tries to humor him instead of completely ignoring him. When he makes that comment about majors, she forced a tight laugh which seems believable enough for him.

Hands end up wandering all over her body and she has to bite her tongue just to keep herself from screaming. She had choked out consent, so Brad could legally do whatever he wanted to her. If Veronica wanted to make things better, she had to just let things happened.

She tried. She really did, but the fear became too much and Veronica shoved Brad off in the most calm way possible. If she said something wrong, then he would go whine to Chandler and get her in trouble.

“Before we really get started, do you think I can go grab my birth control from my purse?” She asked.

“I have a condom,” Brad says.

“Yes, but you never want to be too careful!” Veronica responded quickly, “I’ll be right back, I promise!”

She quickly hurried out of the room, straightening out her dress. She considered just bailing, but that probably wouldn’t end in her favor. And Chandler was her ride home.

While searching for her bag, Veronica caught a strong scent of what she thought was fish. Her nose twitches as she looks around in utter confusion. Was fish being served here or something?

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Chandler talking with a bunch of guys. She was laughing and didn’t look angry. She even smiled and waved a little when they made eye contact. Things were going good.

Then, the outlet near one guy crackled and flames spewed out everywhere. Bright embers caught on the back of Chandler’s dress; the demon queen was on fire. Red and gold engulfed her at a terrifying rate and it would probably only be a few minutes until she was dead.

Only then does Veronica realize she had smelled burning plastic, which gave off a fishy aroma. She could have stopped this. She could have saved Chandler. She could have...

She could.

Almost like it knew, Veronica triggers her new ability. The world becomes grey, except for the fire, which is strangely still in color. The burning victims start to flail in reverse until they’re calm again and the flames are pulled off of their bodies by an invisible force. Strings of marigold and orange retract into the electrical socket, becoming perfectly normal once more.

Veronica is left gasping after the rewind ends, but she’s far from done. She jumps into action, hurrying over to the group. Even though her mind was set on saving Chandler, she had to try and get these frat boys away, too.

“You guys have to move!” She yelled.

Too bad she don’t have time to come up with a believable explanation. That socket was going to pop at any second.

“Veronica, what’s gotten into you this time?” Chandler asked, humoring her a bit more.

“Heather, guys, please just listen to me. Can’t you just stand somewhere else? Trust me, please.”

Maybe it was the alcohol or maybe Chandler was in a good mood, Veronica didn’t know, but the demoness shrugged and waved her boys to a different location. Veronica breathed a sigh of relief before the socket exploded into flames.

This time, instead of screams of pain, there were screams of terror. Veronica hissed when a few flying embers landed on her arm and she clawed to get them off. She stumbled backwards, scratching at her burn to try and soothe the pain. When she turns her head, Chandler gives her a shocked look.

“We have to get out of here.” Veronica said, “Cover your mouth with your hand or shirt, just don’t breathe in the smoke.”

The fire was spreading fast. People were running in every direction, so Veronica had to grab Chandler’s hand so they wouldn’t get separated. Thick black smog was quickly filling up the rooms.

Even with her collar pulled up in front of her nose and mouth, Veronica could still taste the acrid aroma. Her eyes start to water from the smoke, so she has to squint, but she manages to shove her way out of the party safely.

“How...how did you do that?” Chandler asked after taking a few gulps of clean air.

“Do what?” Veronica glanced at her.

“Know that there was going to be a fire. That’s why you told us to move!” The demoness looked suspicious again.

“The smell,” Veronica said cooly, “Melted plastic kinda smells like fish. That meant there could have been a possible electrical fire. I didn’t know it was actually going to happen, though. I just had to play it safe.”

Chandler eyes her for a moment before smiling slightly.

“Thank you, then.” She said, “You probably just saved my life!”

“See, there is a reason to keep me around. I’m a superhero.”

Chandler snorts and affectionately bumps Veronica with her elbow while walking to her car.

“There’s more reasons then that,” She says, “And I’m not just talking about your forgery ability.”

“What’s this? The great and powerful Heather Chandler is soft? For me?”

“Great and powerful, huh? Nice touch.”

“Why thank you. It’s a specialty.”

—

Apparently, from word of mouth and the news, it had, in fact, been an electrical fire. Some of the wires in one of the walls had frayed and began melting the plastic covering. Luckily, the firefighters were able to handle it.

Veronica stayed over at Chandler’s that night, which was even better because there was no JD. She had no idea if he had been planning on still going to her house like last time, even after what she said to him, but she didn’t have to worry about that.

When the time around Chandler’s past death came, Veronica held her breath, like she was expecting her friend to spontaneously combust of something. The clock ticked on and nothing happened.

She was home free.

———

The Heathers quickly picked up on Veronica’s good mood. She was smiling like a complete dork and none of them knew why. Not that it really bothered them; she wasn’t hurting anyone.

While washing her hands in one of the bathrooms, Veronica yelped when she looked up to see that monster thing in the mirror again.

“You have got to stop doing that!” She snapped like it was her dog or something.

She steps forward and leans on the sink, inspecting the creature closely.

“So, what are you doing here? Have you come to tell me more about my cool new ability? Thanks, by the way. It’s awesome!”

The creature growled lowly and Veronica furrowed her eyebrows.

“What’s wrong?”

For a moment, it does nothing. Then, it’s gone, vanishing into tendrils of black smoke in the glass. Veronica was about to shrug it off before she heard the rattling of the stall doors and turned to see the monster in the bathroom with her.

“Oh my god!” She yelled in surprise.

Veronica was barely 5’3, so this thing and to be at least two heads taller than her. Maybe seven feet tall. It’s crouched on all fours, razor sharp claws tapping the tile floor. The only facial feature Veronica can see are its eyes.

“What...what are you...?” Veronica asked in a hoarse whisper.

She was suddenly very uncomfortable and intimidated with this thing being face-to-face with her.

Its head continues to twitch around wildly for a moment before stopping. It looks down and raises one arm. The black haze its body seems to give off is gone around the area below the hand, revealing leathery flesh-colored hide with a blue tint. Similar to Veronica, there’s spotted burns on its wrist. It looks back up.

“What are you?” Veronica asked again, this time louder.

Her vision was flickering all of a sudden. She could see writing on the walls, the same word over and over and over again.

BERENICE

The weird vision ended and the creature slowly cranes its head down to look at the girl.

“̶͇͚̳̝̤̼̰͉͕̹̝̠̾̚͜ͅḬ̷̣̥̎̈́͆̎͆̆͆.̶͓̯̩͕̖̪͚͊̈̑͝ ̸̨͉͓̻̘̳̑͑̅͑͜Á̶̛͓̮̱̲͔̜͉̭̄͐͗̽̓̽̋̈́̓̽͆́͑͜͜ͅm̶̼͖͙͈̱͇̺̘̰͋͆̌̑.̵̜̳̯̙͓̥̘̟̠͚̞͉́̈́̍̂͗̔̔̎̎͆͝͠ ̷̜̫͉̼̜̥͉̖̰̂͛̍̾̅͆̇̾̈́̇͌̔̾̇ͅỴ̸̨̰̩̭͈̆̔̾̈́́̀́͜o̷͙̰̤͕̬̗͈͎ư̵̲̲̓̇͑͌̋͗͂̅̇͋̚͝.̸̢͙̔̎̅̌͒̈́͑͋̒̏̽̍̄̕ 


	2. Gnarled Bones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morse code

Berenice [Name]  
Pronunciation- /be.reˈniː.keː/  
Gender- Female  
Word- Greek/Latin  
Meaning- She who brings victory, True image  
Related names- Ṿ̶̜̈́e̸̟̖̱͓͙͑̈́r̵͇̗̹̽̾͑̆̿̚o̴̝̤̣̙̎̐n̴̥̯̣̓͗̈̚̕ͅi̸͎̋́̓̑ç̴̝̪͎͐̐̚͝â̷͔̭̠̘̬̕͜

———

Time travel was huge feat. Each time Veronica woke up in the morning, she expected to be back in the future. The bad future, where everyone was dead. She wasn’t going to let that happen.

Because of that nagging fear of something going wrong, Veronica made sure that everything stayed on track. When one of the Heathers was griping at her, she let it happen. When she was accused of something, she owned up to it. She was doing anything to make sure nobody died.

JD worried her, too. He always seemed to be staring at her from somewhere. It made her increasingly uncomfortable as time went on. A voice in her head told her to get rid of him. She listened.

—

The soft tune of staticky smooth jazz played through the Snacky Shack. Usually, this place was buzzing with activity, mainly from travelers restocking on cheap snacks, but it was quiet this one evening. The place was almost empty aside from the worker at the counter and a lone trench coat-wearing customer near the corner.

The third addition to the gas station entered: a scrawny, brunette little thing.

Veronica sidled over to one of the aisles and began poking through whatever was on the shelves. When she looked up, the worker was gone. She shivered and slipped a short metal pipe out from her coat. Slowly, she began to approach the guy at the slushee machine from behind.

The worker still wasn’t back. Good enough.

Veronica took a breath, raised the pipe, and then hesitated long enough for the weapon to be grabbed by strong hands, then her brittle wrists.

“How rude,” JD spoke.

Veronica is too shocked to voice her distress. Her eyes are wide and bulging, but she tries to struggle, not wanting to give in this easily. She managed to kick JD in the shin and he lets go.

“Do you greet everyone like that?” The guy asked, obviously trying to set her off again.

It did.

Veronica lunges forward to attack, but saw the gleam of her pipe and heard the ugly, familiar sound of bones cracking. Something connected with her chest; she was on the ground, little starbursts flitting in and out of her vision.

“Hurts, doesn’t it?”

JD grabbed her by the head, hooking his fingers in the red hot crevices at the back of her skin, making his victim whine in pain. He sinks his fingernails in deeper.

“It was just trying to enjoy a slurpy, and then you come along and ruin my afternoon. If you wanted to join me, you could have just asked, darling.”

He shakes her head wildly for a moment before letting go, watching her slump to the ground.

Veronica feels dazed. Her right ear was ringing painfully, while the other leaked blood. She’s crying, maybe. Clawing at the floorboards, writhing around like she’s trying to wiggle out of her own skin. She’s soon gasping and wheezing in the midst of pain. Red bubbles from her lips and she chokes on her struggle. It makes JD laugh.

“Go ahead,” He taunted. “Bleed out and die, see if it changes anything. Let’s see if it makes anyone care. When you get back, your world will still be horrible. The hallucinations and voices aren’t going to go away.”

How did he know about that?

“You are garbage.”

JD’s boot connected under Veronica’s chin with a crunch. Her teeth snapped down on her tongue and her mouth is suddenly full of blood. It leaks in between her lips and drizzles from her nose. Too much blood. Too much blood. Too much blood.

[I]This was a horrible idea.

“Hey, stay with me! I’m not done having fun with y-“

Black and white.

Grey.

The only color is the little droplets of blood.

The rewind happens slow, but then it speeds up. Every backwards movement is so fluid and smooth; it doesn’t even feel like Veronica is moving. When it ends, she’s standing out near the entrance. There’s a terrible ache in her chest from the strain, as it was longer than the other times.

“Bad idea, Sawyer,” She whispered to herself, “Bad idea.”

———

The next time she sees Berenice, the fuzzy static has disappeared from behind their head and marks of fingernails are engraved in the back of their skull.

———

The nightmares come after that. It’s probably just a coincidence, but it still makes Veronica shudder.

Most nights are spent tossing and turning in her bed, exhausted but unable to rest. Blood and gore soaks her dreams. Death she’s unable to stop. People she can’t save. All her hard work is for nothing in the end.

But she wouldn’t let that happen. Not in this timeline. She wasn’t going to screw up.

—

Chandler groaned when her phone buzzed and the bright glare from the screen lit up her room. She was only half-awake and was going to back to sleep when her phone when off again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

By that point, Chandler had had enough and snatched the device off of her nightstand. The little clock on the screen said it was 5:48 in the morning. She was getting text messages.

//

bluebell: Hey, come over.

bluebell: Please.

bluebell: I’m stress cooking.

bluebell: Free food.

bluebell: Come over.

\\\

Chandler stared at the screen for a long time before sighing heavily and hauling herself up. She changes into something a little more presentable and drives over to the Sawyer house, though she doesn’t quite know why.

She knocked on the door, but didn’t get an answer. She was about to try again when the door was yanked open.

“Sorry! Sorry,” Said the frazzled-looking brunette waving around a metal object, which Chandler recognizes is a spatula, “Hey, you made it, though! Thanks for coming over!”

Veronica, who’s dressed in pajamas an hedgehog slippers, closes the door after Chandler walked inside and pads back over to the kitchen, which is the only lit up room in the house.

“Veronica, what’s this all about anyway?” Chandler asked while following her.

“Stress cooking,” Veronica answers, “Duh.”

Chandler raised an eyebrow. The dark bags under Veronica’s eyes are purple-red and look like bruises. She guessed this was all from her lack of sleep lately.

“What are you making exactly?”

“Oh, everything.” Veronica said from where she was standing at the stove. “My parents are away right now, so I decided to just cook some stuff. Do you like cinnamon pancakes?”

The girl was going at a million miles per hour. It was almost hard to keep up with her.

Chandler went over to help flip the pancake because Veronica was busying herself with something else. She still couldn’t find out why she was doing this exactly.

“Oh my god. You know, I bought, like, five billion types of lettuce yesterday at the grocery store. We can call over the others and have salad, too!”

Was Veronica always this much a weirdo in the morning?

That’s how that day started. It was a good beginning. Veronica talked Duke and McNamara into coming over at six in the morning to eat a really early and really strange breakfast with them. Then, they have to go to school. Unfortunately.

They’re walking down the hallway in colorful strides. McNamara is cracking a joke about an outcast student and Duke snorts. Veronica is still thinking about her breakfast.

“Why do people wear animal tails? It’s like they’re asking to be made fun of.” McNamara said.

“To attract a mate.” Chandler snorts.

“I think it’s more than a tail.” Duke says.

Veronica nearly spits out the water she had been sipping from her water bottle. She swallowed quickly.

“That’s definitely one explanation.” She said. “A very valid one. I wouldn’t be surprised if it were true.”

While listening to one of the Heather’s say something else, her muscles tightened up, like she was just dunked in freezing ice water. She wasn’t sure why, but just shook it off.

\- .... . / -.-. .... .. -.-. -.- . -. / ... .— .. — ... / .. -. / .- / .—. — — .-.. / — ..-. / -... .-.. —

They’re walking down the hallway in colorful strides. McNamara is cracking a joke about an outcast student and Duke snorts. Veronica is still thinking about her breakfast.

“Why do people wear animal tails? It’s like they’re asking to be made fun of.” McNamara said.

“To attract a mate.” Chandler snorts.

“I think it’s more than a tail.” Duke says.

Veronica stops in her tracks, blinking multiple times. The Heathers look back at her confusedly.

“What’s up, Veronica?” Duke asked, tilting her head a little.

“I... Didn’t you guys just say that?”

The color-coded she-devils exchange clueless looks.

“Say what?”

“That- that furry thing!” Veronica said. “Maybe I just imagined it? I’m feeling some real deja vu right now.” She laughs it off as nothing.

McNamara laughed.

“Can our Veronica Sawyer see into the future or something?”

... - — .—. / -... .-. . .- - .... .. -. —. .-.-.- / -.— — ..- # .-. . / -.- . . .—. .. -. —. / — . / .- .— .- -.- .

They’re walking down the hallway in colorful strides. McNamara is cracking a joke about an outcast student and Duke snorts. Veronica is still thinking about her breakfast.

“Why do people wear animal tails? It’s like they’re asking to be made fun of.” McNamara said.

“To attract a mate.” Chandler snorts.

“I think it’s more than a tail.” Duke says.

Veronica feels her heart drop into her stomach.

“You already said that!”

Once again, the Heathers look at her strangely, utterly confused.

“What are you talking about?” Chandler asked, the one to speak up this time.

“You guys...you already said all of that. This-“

\- .... . / -.-. .... .. -.-. -.- . -. / .-. . ... - ... / .—. . .- -.-. . ..-. ..- .-.. .-.. -.—

They’re walking down the hallway in colorful strides. McNamara is cracking a joke about an outcast student and Duke snorts. Veronica is still thinking about her breakfast.

“Why do people wear animal tails? It’s like they’re asking to be made fun of.” McNamara said.

“To attract a mate.” Chandler snorts.

“I think it’s more than a tail.” Duke says.

This time, Veronica really does spit out her water. She drops the plastic bottle and it spills out all over the floor. Her chest is hurting really badly. Static fills her brain. The Heathers look at her, but their faces are gaping holes of gore.

...- . .-. — -. .. -.-. .- / .-. ..- -. ... .-.-.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There’s Morse code translators online. I don't actually know the code lol


End file.
